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The Fascinating World Of Dolphins

Most people are under the impression that dolphins are fish because they live in the water. The truth is that dolphins are actually warm-blooded mammals. Like humans they breathe air and produce babies rather than lay eggs. This makes them unique among creatures, but there are other factors that make them so fascinating to us.

If you're ever had the opportunity to be near a dolphin you'll understand why they are as unique as they are. Dolphins, just like whales, are considered to be cetaceans and are part of the grouping of whales that are called odontocetes, which means that they have teeth. The teeth found on a dolphin are shaped like cones. Other whales fall into the group called mysticetes, in which case they don't have teeth to use for feeding.

You'll be able to find dolphins living in tropical, warm waters around the world. Unknown to most people is that there are a few species of dolphins that live in rivers and freshwater. These dolphins, however, are few in number and are now considered to be on the endangered list.

Fifty-seven different species of dolphin make up the world's population today. Dolphins have sleek bodies and their noses, called "rostrum", are long and beak-like. Many of us think that dolphins and porpoises are related, when in fact they are not. One thing that makes them different is their teeth. As mentioned the dolphin's are cone shaped and the porpoise have teeth that look more like spades. This enables them to dig for food among rock. The other major difference is the fact that porpoise are able to live in water that's colder than a dolphin can even tolerate.

One of the most common and well known species of dolphins is the Orca, also known as the killer whale. This large dolphin is considered to be fearless in the water, dominating the list of sea animals that people think of when they think of ferocious creatures.

The female Dolphins are very caring mothers. To give birth to a young calf, the female dolphins have a very long gestation period. The female dolphins stay pregnant for 12 months to deliver one young baby. The baby calves on birth are approximately 30 inches long and weigh around 30 - 40 pounds. During the first two years of the life of the calf, the mother dolphin takes a lot of care and nurses the young one.

Unlike other species of animals where the mother gives birth and the young leave her side after a short period of time, the dolphin calf will stay with its mother for five to seven years. During this time the young dolphin will learn many skills from its mother, including how to feed and how to get along with other dolphins.

Dolphins live and travel together in what is called a "pod". It is the female dolphins that are the ones that do most of the interacting with the young dolphins, while the males play a more aloof part in the parenting process.

Dolphins are amazingly intelligent and curious. These traits make them intriguing to us, along with the fact that dolphins love to interact with humans. They are always ready to tell us all about what's going on in the waters around us, but unfortunately we aren't able to understand them.

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